“Emotion looks the same whether you’re a suburban housewife or a suicide bomber. The truth is written on all our faces.” So says Dr Cal Lightman (Tim Roth), a leading “deception expert” who can analyze facial expressions and body language to determine if somebody is lying. Much like Patrick Jane from The Mentalist, he relies on observation rather than technology to achieve results. And, also like Jane, Lightman’s technique is often dismissed as nothing more than a “carnival act” by those who prefer to rely on lie detectors or DNA profiling to prove a suspect is guilty.
Thankfully Not Another Loner
Previously employed by the Defence Department for whom he created a Deception Detection programme, Lightman has now assembled his own team of experts who work as consultants to various government bodies, corporations and law enforcement agencies. His right-hand woman is Dr Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams), who provides a human touch to complement Lightman’s dogged obsession to dig out the facts. Divorced with a teenage daughter (is no “genius” ever allowed a normal life in police dramas?) Lightman appears unable to switch off at the end of the day – could this be the reason for the split?
Adhering to the principle “The question is never if somebody is lying, it’s why”, the opening episode sees the team involved in two cases – a 16-year-old Jehovah’s Witness accused of murdering his teacher, and a Congressman who has allegedly spent over $60,000 on a high class prostitute. Both initially appear guilty – the boy was caught fleeing from the teacher’s house, where he’d been several times before to photograph her secretly, and the call girl confirms that she meets the Congressman every Friday. But thanks to the persistence of Lightman and his team the real facts gradually emerge.
Entertaining and Educational
Despite peppering the dialogue with terms such as “micro-expressions”, “distancing language”, “physiological flight response” and “gestural emblem”, the viewer is never blinded by science. Unlike the rapid-fire medical jargon of ER, each facial tic or subtle body movement is slowly and clearly demonstrated. The character of Cal Lightman is based on real-life behavioural expert Paul Ekman, who is also acts as an adviser to the programme, and this gives Lie To Me that extra air of authenticity.
As many Brits in Hollywood end up playing villains these days, it is a pleasant surprise that Tim Roth has been allowed to keep his English accent, unlike Hugh Laurie in House. There is real chemistry between the two leads, thankfully without a whiff of romance – surely Lightman would drive any woman mad scrutinising every raised eyebrow or voice inflection? The writers have also sensibly limited the cast to four core characters, so there is no scrambling to find something for everyone to do in each episode. Lie To Me is a classy addition to Sky’s Thursday evening lineup.
